Employment, Hours, and Earnings from the Current Employment Statistics survey (State and Metro Area)

Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release

For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, September 1, 2010 USDL-10-1210
Technical information:
Employment: (202) 691-6559 * sminfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/sae
Unemployment: (202) 691-6392 * lausinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/lau
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
METROPOLITAN AREA EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT -- JULY 2010
Unemployment rates were higher in July than a year earlier in 192 of the 372
metropolitan areas, lower in 170 areas, and unchanged in 10 areas, the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Seventeen areas recorded jobless
rates of at least 15.0 percent, while 6 areas registered rates below 5.0
percent. The national unemployment rate in July was 9.7 percent, not season-
ally adjusted, the same as a year earlier.
Metropolitan Area Unemployment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
In July, 127 metropolitan areas reported jobless rates of at least 10.0 per-
cent, down from 140 areas a year earlier, while 61 areas posted rates below
7.0 percent, little changed from 62 areas in July 2009. El Centro, Calif.,
and Yuma, Ariz., again recorded the highest unemployment rates, 30.3 and
28.7 percent, respectively. These two adjacent areas are highly agricultural
and experience extreme heat during summer months. Among the 17 areas with
jobless rates of at least 15.0 percent, 12 were located in California. Bis-
marck, N.D., registered the lowest unemployment rate in July, 3.1 percent,
followed by Fargo, N.D.-Minn., 3.7 percent. All six areas with jobless rates
of less than 5.0 percent were located in the West North Central division.
Overall, 228 areas recorded unemployment rates below the U.S. figure of 9.7
percent, 138 areas reported rates above it, and 6 areas had rates equal to
that of the nation. (See table 1.)
The largest over-the-year jobless rate increases in July were recorded in
Yuba City, Calif., and Yuma, Ariz. (+2.6 percentage points each). Elkhart-
Goshen, Ind., registered the largest over-the-year jobless rate decrease
(-3.2 percentage points). Eight additional areas reported rate decreases
of at least 2.0 percentage points.
Of the 49 metropolitan areas with a Census 2000 population of 1 million or
more, Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario,
Calif., registered the highest unemployment rates in July, 15.2 and 15.1
percent, respectively. Seventeen additional large areas posted rates of
10.0 percent or more. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va.,
and Oklahoma City, Okla., recorded the lowest jobless rates among the
large areas, 6.3 and 6.4 percent, respectively. The next lowest rate was
registered in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minn.-Wis., 6.8 percent.
Twenty-six of the large areas reported over-the-year unemployment rate in-
creases, while 20 areas recorded rate decreases and 3 had no rate change.
Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev., experienced the largest rate increase from July
2009 (+1.8 percentage points). The large areas with the next largest rate
increases were Jacksonville, Fla., and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
Fla. (+1.2 percentage points each), and Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville,
Calif. (+1.1 points). Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., and Minneapolis-St.
Paul-Bloomington, Minn.-Wis., posted the largest jobless rate decreases over
the year (-1.5 and -1.3 percentage points, respectively), followed by Bir-
mingham-Hoover, Ala., and Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, N.C.-S.C. (-1.2
points each).
Metropolitan Division Unemployment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Eleven of the most populous metropolitan areas are made up of 34 metro-
politan divisions, which are essentially separately identifiable employ-
ment centers. In July, the two divisions that compose the Detroit-Warren-
Livonia, Mich., metropolitan area registered the highest jobless rates:
Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, 16.5 percent, and Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills,
14.2 percent. Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Md., reported the lowest unem-
ployment rate among the divisions, 5.8 percent, followed by Nashua, N.H.-
Mass., 6.3 percent, and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va.,
6.4 percent. (See table 2.)
In July, 20 metropolitan divisions recorded over-the-year jobless rate in-
creases, 9 divisions reported rate decreases, and 5 had rates that were un-
changed. The divisions that experienced the largest unemployment rate in-
creases were Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Fla. (+1.8 percentage points), and
Philadelphia, Pa. (+1.2 points). Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Mich., and
Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Mich., posted the largest rate decreases from last
July (-1.6 and -1.5 percentage points, respectively).
In 6 of the 11 metropolitan areas that contain divisions, the ranges between
the highest and lowest division jobless rates were 2.0 percentage points or
more in July. Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Mass.-N.H., recorded the largest rate
difference among its divisions, 6.4 percentage points (Lawrence-Methuen-Salem,
Mass.-N.H., 12.7 percent, compared with Nashua, N.H.-Mass., 6.3 percent).
Metropolitan Area Nonfarm Employment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
In July, 204 metropolitan areas reported over-the-year decreases in nonfarm
payroll employment, 158 reported increases, and 10 had no change. The largest
over-the-year employment decrease was recorded in Chicago-Joliet-Naperville,
Ill.-Ind.-Wis. (-70,800), followed by San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif.
(-42,800), New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa. (-28,900),
and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif. (-22,800). The largest over-the-
year percentage decreases in employment were reported in Mount Vernon-Anacortes,
Wash. (-4.2 percent), Reno-Sparks, Nev. (-4.1 percent), and Yuba City, Calif.
(-4.0 percent). (See table 3.)
The largest over-the-year employment increase occurred in Washington-Arlington-
Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va. (+41,800), followed by Dallas-Fort Worth-Arling-
ton, Texas (+31,300), Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Mass.-N.H. (+21,300), and Aus-
tin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas (+18,600). The largest over-the-year percent-
age gain in employment occurred in Missoula, Mont. (+7.9 percent), followed by
Ocean City, N.J. (+5.9 percent), Manhattan, Kan. (+4.5 percent), and Lawton,
Okla. (+4.2 percent).
Over the year, nonfarm employment decreased in 25 of the 36 metropolitan areas
with annual average employment levels above 750,000 in 2009. The largest over-
the-year percentage decreases in employment in these large metropolitan areas
were posted in Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev., and San Fran-cisco-Oakland-Fremont,
Calif. (-2.3 percent each), and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif., and
Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville, Calif. (-2.1 percent each). The large area
that reported the biggest over-the-year percentage increase in employment was
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas (+2.5 percent), followed by Washington-Ar-
lington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va. (+1.4 percent), and Dallas-Fort Worth-
Arlington, Texas (+1.1 percent).
Metropolitan Division Nonfarm Employment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Nonfarm payroll employment data were available in July for 32 metropolitan
divisions, which are essentially separately identifiable employment centers
within a metropolitan area. Seventeen of the 32 metropolitan divisions reported
over-the-year employment losses, while 14 reported gains and 1 remained unchanged.
The largest over-the-year decrease in the metropolitan divisions occurred
in Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, Ill. (-58,200), followed by Los Angeles-
Long Beach-Glendale, Calif. (-23,500), Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, Calif.
(-23,000), and San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, Calif. (-19,800).
The largest over-the-year employment increases in the metropolitan divi-
sions were registered in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-
W.Va. (+39,100), Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas (+26,100), Boston-Cambridge-
Quincy, Mass. (+10,400), and Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, Calif. (+8,800).
(See table 4.)
The largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the met-
ropolitan divisions was reported in Lake County-Kenosha County, Ill.-Wis.
(-3.4 percent), followed by Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, Calif. (-2.4 percent),
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, Calif. (-2.1 percent), and Warren-
Troy-Farmington Hills, Mich. (-1.7 percent). The largest over-the-year per-
centage increases in employment among the metropolitan divisions were post-
ed in Haverhill-North Andover-Amesbury, Mass.-N.H. (+3.4 percent), Brockton-
Bridgewater-Easton, Mass. (+2.7 percent), Washington-Arlington-Alexandria,
D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va. (+1.6 percent), and Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas (+1.3 per-
cent).
____________
The Regional and State Employment and Unemployment news release for August
is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, September 21, 2010, at 10:00 a.m.
(EDT). The Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment news release for
August is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, September 29, 2010, at
10:00 a.m. (EDT).

Technical Note
This release presents labor force and unemployment data from the
Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program (tables 1 and 2) for
372 metropolitan statistical areas and metropolitan New England City and
Town Areas (NECTAs), plus 8 areas in Puerto Rico. Estimates for 34
metropolitan and NECTA divisions also are presented. Nonfarm payroll
employment estimates from the Current Employment Statistics (CES)
program (tables 3 and 4) are provided for most of the same areas. State
estimates were previously published in the news release, Regional and
State Employment and Unemployment, and are republished in this release
for ease of reference. The LAUS and CES programs are both federal-state
cooperative endeavors.
Labor force and unemployment--from the LAUS program
Definitions. The labor force and unemployment data are based on
the same concepts and definitions as those used for the official na-
tional estimates obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a
sample survey of households that is conducted for the Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS) by the U.S. Census Bureau. The LAUS program measures
employment and unemployment on a place-of-residence basis. The universe
for each is the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years of age and
over. Employed persons are those who did any work at all for pay or
profit in the reference week (the week including the 12th of the month)
or worked 15 hours or more without pay in a family business or farm,
plus those not working who had a job from which they were temporarily
absent, whether or not paid, for such reasons as labor-management
dispute, illness, or vacation. Unemployed persons are those who were
not employed during the reference week (based on the definition above),
had actively looked for a job sometime in the 4-week period ending with
the reference week, and were currently available for work; persons on
layoff expecting recall need not be looking for work to be counted as
unemployed. The labor force is the sum of employed and unemployed
persons. The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed as a per-
cent of the labor force.
Method of estimation. Estimates for states, the District of
Columbia, the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale metropolitan division,
and New York City are produced using time-series models with real-time
benchmarking to national CPS totals. Model-based estimation was
extended to the following areas and their respective balances of state
in 2005: the Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division;
Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area; Detroit-
Warren-Livonia, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area; Miami-Miami Beach-
Kendall, FL Metropolitan Division; New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA
Metropolitan Statistical Area; and Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA
Metropolitan Division. (Model-based estimation of the New Orleans-
Metairie-Kenner metropolitan area was suspended following Hurricane
Katrina; the indirect estimation methods described below will be used
for this area until further notice.) Modeling improves the statistical
basis of the estimation for these areas and provides important tools for
analysis, such as measures of errors and seasonally adjusted series.
For all other substate areas in this release, estimates are prepared
through indirect estimation procedures using a building-block approach.
Employment estimates, which are based largely on "place of work" esti-
mates from the CES program, are adjusted to refer to place of residence
as used in the CPS. Unemployment estimates are aggregates of persons
previously employed in industries covered by state unemployment in-
surance (UI) laws and entrants to the labor force data from the CPS.
The substate estimates of employment and unemployment, which geograph-
ically exhaust the entire state, are adjusted proportionally to ensure
that they add to the independently estimated state or balance-of-state
totals. A detailed description of the estimation procedures is avail-
able from BLS upon request.
Annual revisions. Labor force and unemployment data shown for the
prior year reflect adjustments made at the end of each year, usually
implemented with January estimates. The adjusted model-based estimates
reflect updated population data from the U.S. Census Bureau, any revi-
sions in the other data sources, and model reestimation. All substate
estimates are reestimated and adjusted to add to the revised model-based
estimates.
Employment--from the CES program
Definitions. Employment data refer to persons on establishment
payrolls who receive pay for any part of the pay period that includes
the 12th of the month. Persons are counted at their place of work
rather than at their place of residence; those appearing on more than
one payroll are counted on each payroll. Industries are classified on
the basis of their principal activity in accordance with the 2007 ver-
sion of the North American Industry Classification System.
Method of estimation. The employment data are estimated using a
"link relative" technique in which a ratio (link relative) of current-
month employment to that of the previous month is computed from a sam-
ple of establishments reporting for both months. The estimates of em-
ployment for the current month are obtained by multiplying the esti-
mates for the previous month by these ratios. Small-domain models are
used as the official estimators for the approximately 39 percent of CES
published series which have insufficient sample for direct sample-based
estimates.
Annual revisions. Employment estimates are adjusted annually to a
complete count of jobs, called benchmarks, derived principally from tax
reports that are submitted by employers who are covered under state un-
employment insurance (UI) laws. The benchmark information is used to
adjust the monthly estimates between the new benchmark and the preceding
one and also to establish the level of employment for the new benchmark
month. Thus, the benchmarking process establishes the level of employ-
ment, and the sample is used to measure the month-to-month changes in
the level for the subsequent months.
Reliability of the estimates
The estimates presented in this release are based on sample surveys,
administrative data, and modeling and, thus, are subject to sampling
and other types of errors. Sampling error is a measure of sampling
variability--that is, variation that occurs by chance because a sample
rather than the entire population is surveyed. Survey data also are
subject to nonsampling errors, such as those which can be introduced
into the data collection and processing operations. Estimates not
directly derived from sample surveys are subject to additional errors
resulting from the particular estimation processes used. The sums of
individual items may not always equal the totals shown in the same
tables because of rounding. Unemployment rates are computed from un-
rounded data and thus may differ slightly from rates computed using
the rounded data displayed in the tables.
Labor force and unemployment estimates. Model-based error measures
are available for states on the Internet at www.bls.gov/lau/lastderr.htm.
Measures of nonsampling error are not available, but additional infor-
mation on the subject is provided in Employment and Earnings Online at
www.bls.gov/opub/ee/home.htm.
Employment estimates. Measures of sampling error for state CES data
at the supersector level and for metropolitan area CES data at the
total nonfarm level are available online at www.bls.gov/sae/
790stderr.htm. Information on recent benchmark revisions for states is
available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/sae/.
Area definitions
The substate area data published in this release reflect the stan-
dards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and
Budget on December 1, 2009. Data reflect New England City and Town
Area (NECTA) definitions, rather than county-based definitions, in the
six New England States. A detailed list of the geographic definitions
is available at www.bls.gov/lau/lausmsa.htm.
Additional information
More complete information on the technical procedures used to develop
these estimates and additional data appear in Employment and Earnings
Online.
Estimates of unadjusted and seasonally adjusted labor force and
unemployment data for states, census regions and divisions, and seven
substate areas are available in the news release, Regional and State
Employment and Unemployment. Estimates of labor force and unemployment
for all states, metropolitan areas, labor market areas, counties, cities
with a population of 25,000 or more, and other areas used in the admini-
stration of various federal economic assistance programs are available
on the Internet at www.bls.gov/lau/. Employment data from the
CES program are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/sae/.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Ser-
vice: (800) 877-8339.